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| Grumpier Old Men - 1995 |
Coming up next is 1995's "Grumpier Old Men". In this sequel to "Grumpy Old Men", we see longtime pals Max and John up to their old hijinks. An elusive catfish has been spotted in the area, and Max faces off with a tough Italian businesswoman.
The film's cast includes Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, Sophia Loren, Ann-Margret, Burgess Meredith, Daryl Hannah, Kevin Pollak, and Ann Morgan Guilbert.
Longtime friends and fishing buddies John Gustafson and Max Goldman are excited. They are sure that this is the year that they will snag Catfish Hunter, an elusive catfish, on their fishing lines.
John's father is also pretty excited about it, too. He sits on a sofa on the banks of the lake, drinking beer, and fishing to his heart's content.
The town of Wabasha, Minnesota is changing fast. Max is initially excited about the new changes, namely a lovely Italian named Maria. He becomes less than enthused when he discovers that she will be turning his favorite bait shop into an Italian "ristorante".
"People are not gonna come down here for Italian (EYE-talian) when we got a Chuck E. Cheese right in town," he tells her matter-of-factly.
And so begins a sour relationship between the two of them. Their carts crash at the supermarket, and so do their personalities. They call each other "ox" and "nag".
Maria is really a very nice lady, and she wants nothing more than to settle down in a nice town and make a life for herself.
It's all-out war when Max enlists the help of John to get Maria a bad report from the health inspector.
John's wife Ariel sends him to apologize for his behavior. However, he had too much to drink and passes out at Maria's restaurant. She has him take a hot shower before he heads home. Ariel arrives and thinks the worst. Of course, nothing happened, but it doesn't do good things for John and Max's friendship. Max is secretly in love with Maria.
The icy relationship between Max and Maria thaws when they spend a little time together, and Max finds out what a good fisherwoman she is.
He gets the most ridiculous grin on his face after their first date. John just rolls his eyes.
John and Max's friendship sours over a disagreement involving the wedding of their children. The gloves come off with a vengeance.
Max gets a new dog named Lucky to get rid of John's cat Slick, who likes to go to the bathroom on Max's newspaper.
Things get heated up. A duel is fought on the front lawn with fishing poles. The animals just watch in disbelief.
The death of John's father brings them closer together. John and Max stand on the edge of the lake remembering the old man and renewing their bonds of friendship.
The days go by and Max and Maria get engaged. On the day of their wedding, things don't go exactly according to plan. As they make their way to the church, John and Max hear a report that Catfish Hunter has been sighted in the lake. Not wanting to miss an opportunity to catch the elusive fish, they get their gear and head to the water.
Of course, they catch him. John decides to release the fish back into the lake so that he can live to swim another day.
The two of them hurry off to the church for Max's wedding to Maria. "My son-in-law has the face of a mackerel," sniffles Maria's mother.
Just like Max did at John's wedding to Ariel, John has planned a surprise for the newly married couple. He sneaks Max's stinky dog Lucky into the limousine. Max and Maria, initially startled by the smell, start laughing.
And so does, John, who watches their departure with a grin on his face.
Cast rundown:
Jack Lemmon................................John Gustafson
Walter Matthau..............................Max Goldman
Sophia Loren.................................Maria Ragetti
Ann-Margret..................................Ariel Gustafson
Burgess Meredith...........................Grandpa Gustafson
Daryl Hannah.................................Melanie
Kevin Pollak...................................Jacob Goldman
Ann Morgan Guilbert.......................Mama Ragetti
And that's it for Grumpier Old Men. There was supposed to be another film in the "Grumpy Old Men" series. It was to have taken place in Rome. The storyline would have seen Maria's former husband contest her marriage to Max on the basis that their divorce was never finalized. However, the film never got past the planning stage.
Can I tell you how much this shot makes me laugh? It features Walter Matthau on the lake during the opening credits. If you stick around during the closing credits of the film, you can see some hilarious outtakes.
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